Laterally engageable snap fastener for garments

ABSTRACT

A snap fastener, of a laterally engageable type, for garments in general, comprises a male part including a contoured projection and to be clamped to a first flap of the garment article, and a female part, including a female part hollow body having an inner cavity and clamped to a second flap of the garment article, the hollow body including, at a top part thereof, a seat for laterally engaging therein the contoured projection, the seat comprising an elongated slot including an open end portion, formed on the peripheral surface of the hollow body. 
     With respect to a prior like snap fastener, the inventive snap fastener has the advantage that it allows the garment article to be buttoned up by a simple lateral engaging of the male portion into the female portion, without requiring additional axial movements. 
     A further advantage is that the inventive snap fastener allows to button-up the garment article by a single movement of the parts constituting the snap fastener, without requiring any application of an axial effort.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a snap fastener, of a laterally engageable type, specifically designed for simplifying the buttoning-up operations on garment articles.

Snap fasteners, in which the snap fastener male portion is locked inside the snap fastener female portion by transversely displacing the first portion of the snap fasteners with respect to the second portion thereof, i.e. by engaging, by an axial type of movement, the male portion of the snap fastener into an enlarged seat formed in the female portion of the snap fastener are already known.

In this prior snap fasteners, the requirement of performing two different movements to connect the parts or portions of the snap fastener hinders a quick coupling thereof.

Moreover, in performing buttoning-up operations, the axial movements require a counter-biassing force to be applied by the user fingers, which further complicates the coupling operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Thus, the main object of the invention is to provide a laterally engageable snap fastener which, with respect to a like snap fastener of the prior art, can be buttoned-up in a much more simple manner.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a snap fastener which allows its component parts to be coupled without the need of axially displacing said parts.

The above mentioned objects, as well as yet other objects, which will become more apparent hereinafter, are achieved by the snap fastener according to claim 1.

Preferred embodiments of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

With respect to prior snap fastener constructions, the snap fastener of the invention provides the advantages that it can be buttoned-up by simply and quickly engaging the snap fastener male portion into the snap fastener female portion, without the need of performing additional axial movements.

Yet another advantage is that the snap fastener according to the present invention can be buttoned-up by a single movement of its component portions, without the need of applying an axial counter-biassing force.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above mentioned, as well as yet other, objects, advantages and characteristics of the present invention will become more apparent hereinafter from the following detailed disclosure of a preferred, though not exclusive, embodiment of the snap fastener according to the invention, which is illustrated, by way of an indicative, but not limitative example, in the accompanying drawings, where:

FIG. 1 shows the two portions forming the snap fastener of the invention, before their coupling or buttoning-up;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the buttoning-up of the snap fastener of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a further cross-sectional view showing the inventive snap fastener in a buttoned-up condition.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference to the number references of FIG. 1, the snap fastener according to the present invention comprises a snap fastener male portion 1 including a contoured projection 2, in particular of a mushroom configuration, and being clamped on a first flap 3 of the garment article.

The snap fastener further comprises a snap fastener female portion 4, in turn formed by a hollow body 5 having, through a top surface thereof, an elongated slot 6 to be clamped to a second flap 7 of said garment article.

More specifically, said elongated slot 6 comprises, on a side thereof facing the peripheral surface 11 of the body 5, an outer opening 8.

As is clearly shown in FIG. 2, the two flaps 3 and 7 can be buttoned-up to one another by engaging, with a lateral movement in the direction of the arrow F, the projection 2 of the snap fastener male portion 1 in the elongated slot 6 of the snap fastener female portion 4, starting from its open end portion 8 (FIGS. 1 and 2).

Upon having performed the above movement, the projection 2 will be fully housed inside the cavity 10 of the body 5, and will be herein held or restrained by a resilient tongue 9.

Said resilient tongue 9, in particular, is arranged on the bottom of said hollow body 5 (FIG. 3).

As a modified embodiment, not shown, said resilient tongue 9 can also be provided, instead of the bottom, at one side or the two sides of the elongated slot 6 of the snap fastener female portion 4. 

1. A snap fastener, of a laterally engaging type, for garment articles, comprising a snap fastener male portion including a contoured projection and to be clamped to a first flap of a garment article, and a snap fastener female portion, including a hollow body having an inner cavity and to be clamped to a second flap of said garment article, said snap fastener being characterized in that said hollow body comprises, on a top portion thereof, a side engaging seat for laterally engaging therein said contoured projection in said inner cavity.
 2. A snap fastener, according to claim 1, characterized in that said engaging seat comprises an elongated slot having an open end portion, formed through a peripheral surface of said hollow body.
 3. A snap fastener, according to claim 2, characterized in that said snap fastener further comprises a resilient tongue, housed inside said cavity of said body and designed for holding said projection in said cavity.
 4. A snap fastener, according to claim 3, characterized in that said resilient tongue is clamped on a bottom of said cavity.
 5. A snap fastener, according to claim 3, characterized in that said resilient tongue is clamped at one of the sides, or both sides, of said elongated slot. 